I had lunch with an old friend recently. He is one of life’s innovators, a true entrepreneur who pushes the boundaries of technology to solve real-world problems. Sometimes his solutions are so cutting edge, people don’t actually realize they have a problem that needs to be solved until he highlights the issues his technology is able to tackle. This makes marketing very difficult.

Small Budget

One of the biggest problems he faced was the fact nobody was searching for his innovative solution. This meant that he was unable to effectively tap popular, everyday marketing solutions like paid search.

There were, of course, similar products (at least in terms of the industry vertical they served) he could try to piggyback, but the lack of relevancy (in a highly competitive market with hundreds of generic products only loosely connected to his) pushed up the cost of any engagement and resulted in a high bounce rate.

He resigned himself to the fact that if he was going to sell this new product, he would have to knock on doors and sell it the old-fashioned way.

Cold Selling

As anyone who has been involved with “cold” selling practices will tell you, it’s a really difficult and time-consuming process. No matter how useful a product or service could be to a potential customer, the salesperson must (a) find the right person to speak to, (b) engage with them, (c) build their trust, (d) use this relationship to win over their colleagues and (e) come to an agreeable conclusion that benefits both parties. More often than not, no matter how good the product or service, this process falls over at the first hurdle.

The fact is: People DO NOT like to be sold to.

A More Innovative Approach

Innovative marketers understand this and flip the sales and marketing process on its head. Instead of “selling” a product or service, they let the customer “buy” it.

The easiest way to do this is to create, publish and “seed” as much content about the product or service as possible.

This content can come in many forms, including blog posts, email campaigns, webinars, whitepapers, podcasts and videos.

The more information you share, the more customers will come your way seeking to buy your product or service.

Note: Think about how you buy products or services yourself. Would you buy a family holiday, a new car, a new computer or smartphone without first reading reviews, checking specifications and comparing it to other products on the market? By the time you come to buy, you probably need very little persuasion from a sales advisor (you may not even need to speak to a real person to complete the transaction).

Focus on Solving Problems

Great content always focuses on solving problems. And remember, some products and services solve many problems (for example, an investment in technology can drive efficiencies, boost productivity, save money and enhance profits) – focus on them all because different stakeholders in a business will have different interests and priorities.

Then it’s just a case of putting the right content in front of the right people at the right time (social media is great for this). Don’t forget, all content must have a call to action. There is no point in sparking someone’s interest, just to let them walk away from you. An email subscription offering more great content is the perfect solution to keep prospects engaged in a conversation and qualify the “hottest” leads – who you should definitely make direct contact with.

Innovators Automate

Creative content marketing takes a lot of upfront investment in content creation – but once produced, it remains useful as long as that content remains relevant.

Remember: It doesn’t matter how old a piece of content is, it will always appear fresh to someone who hasn’t consumed it before.

This is where innovative marketing technology like marketing automation comes into its own. It helps keep the conversation going when you are busy doing something else.

Read the latest from our blog

With just days to go before the new European Union Global Data Protect Regulation (more commonly known as GDPR) comes into effect, there has never been more focus on email marketing in the news and on social media. Understandably, marketers are concerned about compliance, and if you’re not sure whether your MORE…

I’m not a BIG fan of the BIG marketing campaign. I would much prefer to work on a continuous flow of bite-size campaigns that drive a constant flow of traffic into my business than gamble on the success of one BIG, expensive marketing extravaganza. The problem with BIG campaigns is MORE…

Do you suffer from email marketing–related anxiety? It’s a common malady, normally identified by a quickening of the pulse, a dry mouth and sweaty palms prior to hitting the send button on your latest email campaign. No Cure While there is no cure for email marketing–related anxiety (and it may MORE…